Can anything more be written about the Common Core that will further enlighten anyone. Well maybe the civil disobedience it has stoked. But one thing is sure, it has united the right and the left in clear opposition but for different reasons.
The right, particularly the Tea Party, denounces the Common Core as yet another opportunity for a federal take over of our schools. Of course, they are wrong about that as they are wrong about so many things. Common Core is not a federal program, it came from an attempt by the nation's governors to standardize what is taught across our country. It is true that federal funds have supported the development of the testing programs that Common Core has spawned. Nonetheless, right wing legislators across the country are trying to dismantle CC through direct legislative mandates to defunding any efforts to develop curriculum and/or testing.
The left wing is also opposed to Common Core. Teachers and their unions do not like the link to their evaluations and testing. Race to the Top, a federal funding voluntary program, required that teacher evaluations be linked to testing programs. And the Common Core testing programs are what we have now. Folks who are just anti-testing in general are also opposed to the program.
Oh and then there are just ordinary families who do not like to see the melt-downs that their kids are experiencing when testing season begins. They are also not happy with the preparation for the tests. Anecdotal evidence seems to be that families are so unhappy that they are organizing civil disobedience stay at home during test days. Sort of like, "hell no, we won't go" on test days.
This year's testing is really more about testing the test than the kids. But the children still need to go through the experience for the test to get tested. It will be interesting to see what form this whole program looks like after all the stake holders weigh in. More to come, I am sure.
No comments:
Post a Comment